Cheers, Amen: Bottoms Up in Jesus’ Name

My buddy Ryan Harmaning wrote this piece for the print version of the Vox-Pop. It’s well done and me thinks it deserves to be posted in another format here on Doxolgist. Ryan and his wife Ruth (along with baby Zoe) used to attend our weekly home-group. It wasn’t uncommon before and after group to find Ryan and I nerding out over our favorite local brews and pubs. While I’m certainly not as knowledgeable as Ryan, and don’t have as developed a palate as he, we still enjoy ourselves a good ale in the name of The Lord. AMEN!

Alcohol. Few words in the English language carry so much baggage to the Protestant of the 20th and 21st centuries. It wasn’t a frightening topic for the better part of two millenniaafter the time of Christ.and well before. Long have the dangers of inebriation been known we’ve got examples throughout Scripture and extra-biblical history of the multitudeof sins compounded by the initial sin of lacking selfcontrol one sin leading to many. As the Apostle Paul wrote, “Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery” (Ephesians 5:18; NIV).

The Bible describes many sins committed through being drunk: adultery, incest, public shame, deceit, and treacheries of all sorts. Poetically, there are some particularly vivid metaphors about drunkenness and its consequences in the book of Jeremiah, where a rebellious king is condemned to “wallow in the vomit” of his drunkenness (48:26).

On this point, I expect no argument: the sin of drunkenness and the countless regretful actions it makes us vulnerable to are to be avoided at all costs. Even if that means looking prudish in front of others, or otherwise exercising discernment in settings where over-indulgence is accepted (or expected). And I won’t refute the command to submit to the legal authorities (i.e. under-age drinking). The law is the law and, as stated in Romans  13:1, we are to be exemplary in adhering to it (this includes contracts with employers or
educational institutions that forbid alcohol consumption).

But what we Christians can be exceptionally good at is making rules, and while the sin of drunkenness is universally agreed upon, what constitutes appropriate occasions, quantities, types, and frequencies by which to enjoy an adult beverage is as disorienting as a traffic detour through a downtown Seattle construction zone. We are living in a day (here in America) where even though the great failed experiment of Prohibition is nearing its centennial, a noticeable shadow of circumspection still looms over drinking, as if it categorically implies drunkenness

Years ago, when my brother-in-law’s fledgling church was putting down its membership covenants for the first time, the issue of alcohol of course came up. The pastor didn’t drink (and still doesn’t, to my knowledge), believing it sets a poor example. Along with the pastor, the other founding members initially agreed that new members shouldn’t consume or even be employed by establishments that serve alcohol. A wise founding member stepped in advising the group that if this were enacted, Jesus himself would not be fit as a member according to their “wisdom.”

That’s really where Christians have to bring it all back: Jesus and his example. And Jesus deals with the issue of alcohol and its consumption in many direct and indirect ways. He
infamously performed His first documented miracle in Cana. A wedding party was losing steam so Jesus turned water into wine good wine so the festivities could continue as tradition held. It is said he “manifested his glory” through this miracle, bringing his disciples to true belief (John 2:10).

Also, Christ was frequently at the table with “sinners” and drunkards so much so in fact, He was charged with over-indulging himself (Luke 5:30). You could potentially (though weakly) argue that He simply didn’t drink in these circumstances, but why is it so difficult to picture our perfectly human, perfectly divine Savior enjoying a cup of wine with others; demonstrating responsibility and enjoying the “merriness of heart” which is so frequently praised in Scripture (Ecclesiastes 9:17; 10:9)? If you argue that Jesus abstained from alcohol, you have to dismiss His participation in the Last Supper, during which Passover tradition mandated the consumption of wine. Suffice it to say, Christ drank alcohol, and likely enjoyed Himself doing so.

Nevertheless, this argument has its critics in abstentionists (”it’s better not to”) and prohibitionists (”you better not!”), some of whom argue that the “new wine” referenced in Scripture must mean grape juice (i.e. not fermented). But if they wanted to write “juice,” the inspired writers of Scripturewould have certainly used the appropriate word, as there is a most notable distinction between the two beverages. Further investigation reveals that, in the Bible, the word juice is used to specify juice (Numbers 6:3; 18:27; Isaiah 65:8), and the word wine is used (whether new or old) to describe wine. Go figure. There’s a certain common sense to this argument (wine is wine and juice is juice): in a desert climate with no modern refrigeration, it doesn’t take long for juice to ferment.

What’s more, in Hosea 4, “new wine” is something that “take[s] away the understanding”
(v. 10). And those who mocked the disciples at Pentecost accused them of being “filled with new wine,” AKA drunk (Acts 2:13). If new wine can make somebody three sheets to the wind in both the Old and New Testaments, then it ain’t Welch’s. But perhaps the history portrayed in the Bible is perceived to be too far removed from today. It’s easy to idealize and sanitize ancient cultures and times especially ancient religious culture and times. The truth is, wine (alcohol) was then what it is today: a gift from God meant to be enjoyed responsibly according to our conscience. Making arguments that “new wine” means grape juice is not a sensible way to approach the subject.

And even outside of the Bible, alcohol consumption played a role throughout Christian history. Martin Luther praised the excellence of his wife’s beer. Other fathers of the Reformation, including Zwingli and Calvin, saw alcohol as a blessing from God that was meant to be enjoyed. The most religious men of the medieval era the monks possessed legendary wine-making and beer-brewing skills (Trappist Monks in today’s Belgium are still masters of the art). Our Puritan forefathers, arriving in North America, dropped anchor when they did because the supplies of beer were low (more beer than water was loaded on the Mayflower), and the town brewery was erected before the church.

Granted, that was still several hundred years ago. “Times were different,” one might argue. “The poor quality of water necessitated fermentation to keep drinking liquids safe.” True, yet that misses the point: people had a choice, exercised their conscience (also a gift from God; Romans 2:15), and imbibed responsibly.

Attempting to regulate behavior without addressing motives and the heart is nothing more than empty legalism, morality, and religion all things Mars Hill seeks to correct by
the liberating Gospel of Jesus Christ. Many of our church’s pastors and leaders demonstrate this lifestyle in various practical ways.

For example, Pastor Tim Quiring’s legendary homebrewed ales were featured at early Mars Hill men’s retreats, where enjoyment and restraint were demonstrated to not be mutually exclusive. Imagine men getting together around a bonfire and enjoying fellowship, reading of Scripture, and relaxing with a good beer (and maybe pipe or cigar too seelast month’s “Vices Redeemed”). Truly a demonstration of what it means to enjoy God’s good gifts in a way that brings
him glory.

The alcohol and religiosity has affected Pastor Tim’s life since childhood. “Alcohol disappeared when I was about eight,” he recalls. “The churches we went to frowned on consumption of alcohol and so it was removed from the home when the children could “spill the beans.’”

This train of thought unfortunately common in many churches is dangerous because it implies that things are either intrinsically bad or good. In reality, God is good, His creation (all of it) is good, but it’s we the sinners who screw things up (Genesis 12; 4:10; Psalm 146:6ff).

This is not to say that alcohol is a good idea for everyone. “I understand that there are both physiological and psychological predispositions to alcoholism,” Pastor Tim says, “but not talking about [alcohol].leads to confusion about undue shame associated with that gift; this is true whether the item is food, art, or sex. Legalism tends to fill the void of things not discussed and practiced in context of biblical understanding.”

Pastor Tim hosts social brew-days, where everything from proper yeast strains to hop varieties to theology can be discussed. Recently, Pastor Tim recalls, “I had a three-hour
conversation with a twenty-something Alaskan philosophymajor- communist-atheist-Castro-wannabe where he began to see past his conventional understanding of Christian philosophy and, through shared home brewing experiences, engage the heart of practical Christian living. The questions went from “what do you think?’ to “why do you do?’ and from speaking from the head to sharing from the heart. God will use us to be his heartbeat when we live all of our lives in a redeemed manner and are willing to bring the gospel into the lives of others.”

Redeeming alcohol can also extend past guarded church events and deeper still into culture. Take the pub crawl, for instance an event whose name doesn’t even suggest moderation. Jon Krombein, a Mars Hill deacon, heard about a pub crawl for a charity which was close to his heart; his niece Ella suffers from Cystic Fibrosis and Jon discovered the CF Foundation in Seattle organizes a yearly fundraising pub crawl for the charity. Working with a handfulof local pubs, sales of beer, food, and a registration fee are all donated to the CF Foundation. While such an altruistic event brings out responsible advocates, Jon certainly admits that part of the crowd is out to get loaded and get lucky. Jon, however, was raised in a Christian home where the example was “Enjoy good things and don’t be stupid,” and the pub crawl fundraiser seemed like a good idea. When asked about the potential for Christians redeeming such an event/atmosphere, his reply is simple: “I don’t think there’s any question that it can be redeemed. If we, as Christians, attend the crawl to raise money for CF Research, and we can drink responsibly and enjoy the hops that God has graciously given us, then we have redeemed the crawl.” But he adds the condition, “Of course if conscience or family patterns don’t allow you to do that, then you should not be the one redeeming alcohol.”

Thankfully, at the end of the day, we as Christians have God’s Word to ultimately rely on. Unfortunately for rule-makers, there isn’t a single answer that will mean the same thing for everyone. There is tension regarding alcohol throughout Scripture for a reason: depending on the situation and the individual conscience, it can be bad or good at times tempting and twisting toward sin, and at times relaxing, enlivening, and deepening one’s appreciation of God’s provision and character. As Jesus said, “It is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but what comes out of the mouth. what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart” (Matthew 15:11, 18). (Additionally, we also most certainly should not flaunt our Christian liberty in front of weaker brothers or anyone likely to abuse or be sorely tempted to abuse because of personality or history of addictions; 1 Corinthians 8:911.)

Our changed hearts as disciples of Christ are to be what guides us we are to “continue to  work out [our] salvation with fear and trembling” (Philippians 2:10). This is no little matter, yet sometimes we make it a much bigger issue than it needs to be. Some of us need to repent of our self-righteous abstinence, some of us need to stop using our “freedom in Christ” to excuse drunkenness, and some of us should simply enjoy the blessing of fermentation to His glory,and look forward to the fine wines that will be served at the wedding feast of the Lamb.